Republican State Auditor Will Investigate Missouri Marijuana Program, Meanwhile There's A Recall Of 60K Pot Products

Missouri state auditor Scott Fitzpatrick started an investigation of the state’s cannabis program that is not a routine audit, but more of a scheduled review, first reported Missouri Independent. Both medical and recreational programs will be audited, starting with records from 2018, when Missouri legalized medical marijuana.

Fitzpatrick noted that the goal behind this is to examine if regulators are operating “in a manner that is efficient, accountable and transparent.” In an email to the outlet, a first-term Republican said the audit seemed necessary as the marijuana industry is growing to $1 billion. According to Fitzpatrick the amendments that legalized marijuana reflect some of the biggest changes seen in the state’s constitution to date.

“These provisions now make up more than one-fifth of the language in our state constitution,” Fitzpatrick said. “The rules and regulations promulgated for these programs govern hundreds of marijuana facilities all across Missouri that cultivate and sell cannabis products to hundreds of thousands of Missourians each year.”

See Also: Missouri New Marijuana Regulations: Businesses License Risks For Event Organizers & Subpoenaing Cannabis Records

The Department of Health and Senior Services confirmed it will be collaborating with the state Auditor’s office.

Since the beginning of the medical marijuana program, there have been several controversies, such as applicants who were denied licenses arguing systemic inconsistencies in scoring applications. In 2022, there was a legal challenge to the state’s maximum of 60 licensed growers. There was also an FBI investigation of possible corruption in the industry.

Recall Of More Than 60K Pot Products

Meanwhile, the Missouri Division of Cannabis Regulation (DCR) issued a recall Monday for more than 62,000 cannabis products that were not compliantly tracked in the statewide track and trace system, METRC. This means that the origin of these products, from edibles to vape cartridges, could not be verified or that they required testing before being sold at dispensaries.

The recalled products were produced by infused product manufacturer, Delta Extraction, LLC, MAN000022. While no adverse effects were reported from using the product at the time of publishing, the division advised patients and consumers to either discard them or return them to the dispensary where they bought them.

The list of recalled products can be found HERE.

Photo: Courtesy of CRYSTALWEED cannabis via Unsplash